Sugar-beet seeder.



No. 809,233. PATENTED JAN. 2, 1906. r. TIEMANN. SUGAR BEET SEEDER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1, 1905.

' 4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

MK-Enema {7 attozmqo PATENTED JAN. 2, 1906.

F. TIBMANN.

SUGAR BEET SEEDER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1, 1905.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

I/Witnesses No- 809,233. PATENTED JAN. 2, 1906.

P. TIBMANN.

SUGAR BEET SBEDER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY1,1905.

4 SHEETSSHEET 3.

Wm wooeo No. 809,233. PATENTBD JAN. 2, 1906. P. TIEMANN.

SUGAR BEET SEEDER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1,1905.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

' Qwvenfoz (180mm LJ) PATENT OFFICE. I

FREDERICK TIEMANN, OF ORDWAY, COLORADO.

SUGAR-BEET SEEDER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented. Jan. 2, 1906.

Application filed May 1,1905. Serial No. 258,319.

. To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK TIEMANN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Ordway, in the county of Otero and State of Colorado, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Sugar-Beet Seeders, ofwhich the following is a specification.

My invention relates to planters; and it consists in certain parts andtheir construction and arrangement whereby to especially adapt theplanter for planting sugar-beet seeds, as fully set forth hereinafterand as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is alongitudinal sectional elevation of a beet-seed planter embodying myimprovement. Fig. 2 is a rear elevation; Fig. 3, a plan view; Fig. 4, anenlarged end view of the seedbox and its adjuncts Fig. 5, a section onthe line 5 5, Fig. 4 Fig. 6, a section on the line 6 6, Fig. 4; Fig. 7,a section on the line 7 7, Fig. 4 Fig. 8, an end view of the oppositeend of the seedbox, and Fig. 9 a per' spective view of the seedbox withthe cover removed.

The frame A of the machine is of any suitable construction and issupported by the driving-wheels B B and steering-wheels C, the axle 25being connected to turn with the driving-wheels in any suitable manner.To the frame A are hung supplementary frames E, and, as shown, the saidframes are provided with clips encircling the axle or shaft 25 and swingabout the latter, so that the seed-distributing mechanisms carried bythe supplementary frame may be driven from sprockets 2 upon the shaft 25through the medium of chains 3 or through any other suitable gearing, soas to operate regardless of the positions which the supplemental framesmay occupy. Each frame E is connected at the rear end by a link 15 withthe arm 16 of a rock-shaft 32, which may be swung by a hand-lever 17 toraise and lower the supplemental frame, said lever being provided with ahand-bolt 1 engaging a toothed segment 18, whereby the lever may be heldin any position to which it is carried, the lever 17 being accessiblefrom the drivers seat 20.

As it is not desirable to operate the distributing mechanism when theframes E are lifted, a suitable clutch device 28 for connecting thesprockets to and disconnecting them from the driving-shaft is combinedwith means whereby the clutch may be uncoupled when the frame E israised. As shown, there is a lever 30 engaging the clutch device andactuated by a spring 40 to maintain the clutch-sections in engagement,and a rod 29 extends from the other end of the lever to an arm 41 on therock-shaft 32, so that when the latter is rocked to raise the frame Ethe lever 30 will be swung to separate the clutch-sections.

Each frame E carries a seedbox F, from which the seed is distributed, ashereinafter described, to a conduit 8, extending downward to the rear ofa plow 7, and in the construction shown there are two conduits to eachbox, one extending downward from each end and at the rear of the frame,and at the center is a plow 12, which will make a furrow between the tworows made by the plows 7 for the reception of water when artificialirrigating. is employed. Where such irrigat on is not necessary, theplow 12 may be omltted. Closely behindeach plow 7 is a wheel 11, with agrooved or curved rim of such wldth that it will tend to carry the earthback into the furrow made by the plow 7 and cover the seed which hasfallen through the conduit 8.

The plows and covering-wheels may be carried to any suitable height bymeans of the hand-levers 17 and may be set in position by means of thebolts-1 taking into the segment 18; but for relative adjustment each ofthe said parts has a stem 14 extendmg through the frame E and perforatedfor the passage of transverse securing-pins 63, by means of which eitherone of the said parts may be held in any position to which it is ad-'usted. The plows and the covering-wheels may be braced by braces 51,extending diagonally forward through openings in the frame and threadedat their upper ends and provided with nuts 13.

The seed-distributing mechanism of each box is operated from a shaft 49,extending centrally through the box and provided with a sprocket-pinion36, engaged by the chain 8.

Each end piece 88 of the box has near the bottom a port 43, and thebottom of the box is inclined from the center downward toward each endand also from each side downward at each end and toward the ports 43 tocause the seed to be directed by gravity to these ports, the flow of theseeds to the ports being facilitated by blades 37, extending radiallyfrom the shaft 49. From each port 43 the seed passes to pockets 44 in aflat disk or distributing-wheel 4, the inner face of which lies againstthe outer face of the end piece 38 of the box, the pockets 44 beingarranged a suitable distance apart and so that they are successivelybrought opposite the port 43.

As the pockets 44 extend completely through the disk 4, they are closedat the outer ends by a closing-plate 39, and a preferable constructionconsists in making this plate of such thickness that a circular recessmay be formed therein which will just receive the disk 4, whichistherefore completely inclosed by the said plate, and a cap-plate may bearranged at the outside of the closingplate 39, the shaft 49 passingthrough the said parts and the disk 4 being secured to turn with thesaid shaft. In the plate 39 there is also formed a channel 45, the upperend of which is in such a position that the pockets 44 are broughtsuccessively opposite the same, as shown in Fig. 5, the lower end of thechannel being above the conduit 8, as shown in dotted lines, Fig. 4.

Preferably the port 43 and the pockets 44 instead of passing through theend of the box and through the disk 4 parallel to the shaft are at anangle thereto, as shown in Fig. 6, so that the seed shall pass bygravity from the port 43 to the pockets and from each pocket to thechannel 45, as indicated in Fig. 8. To facilitate this passage, aspring-blade 46 is bolted to the outer face of the end piece 38 in suchposition that it will be held nearly flat within a recess in the endpiece and bearing against the inner face of the disk 4 until a pocket 44begins to pass the spring, when the end of the latter will spring intothe said pocket in the position shown in Fig. 5, thereby forcing outwardany seed that are in the pocket. Another spring 47 may be set in arecess in the outer face of the end piece 38 to prevent the crushing ofseeds in the pocket 44 as it passes from opposite the port 43. By theabove-described construction and arrangement of seed-distributing partsthe seed are dropped intermittently and thereby the ordinary bunchingoperations required to separate the plants into successive groups isavoided, while the distributing mechanism is operated continuously.

The parts 38, 39, and 4 may be of wood or metal, and it will be seenthat owing to their simple construction they may be readily manufacturedand that the distributing disks or wheels 4 are so thoroughly covered asto be protected from dampness and from rust- 1 While I have referred toa plurality of frames E as being connected with one main frame A, itwill of course be understood that there may be but a single frame E andthat but a single seed-distributing mechanism or a plurality ofseed-distributing mechanisms may be mounted upon each frame E.

Without limiting myself to the precise construction and arrangement ofparts shown, I

claim as my invention 1. The combination with the frame and itssupporting-wheels and shaft of a planter, of a plurality of supplementalframes each connected to said shaft to swing independently, eachsupporting plows and seeddistributing mechanism, means for operatingsaid mechanisms from said shaft, and independent clutch devices betweenthe shaft and each of said means, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination with the seedbox of a planter, having a port at theend, of a seedwheel having pockets, means for rotating it to carry saidpockets past said port, a closingplate at the opposite side of the wheelhaving a port, and a conduit leading downward from the latter port,substantially as set forth.

3. The combination with the seedbox of a planter having an end piece andport therein, of a shaft extending through said end, a seedwheel withpockets secured to said shaft and rotating in contact with the outerface of said end piece, a plate in contact with the outer face of thewheel having a channel, the upper end of which is in position tocoincide with the pockets, a plow, and a conduit extending from abovethe plow to the lower end of said channel, substantially as set forth.

4.. In a seed-distributer, a. box having a port at one end, a seed-wheelwith pockets arranged to be brought opposite said port, a plate having achannel with which said pockets may be brought into communication, and aspring arranged adjacent said wheel to spring into each pocket as thelatter passes the spring, substantially as set forth.

5. A box for a planter having an end piece with a port therein, a wheelwith pockets rotating in contact with the outer face of said end piece,and a plate recessed at the inner face to receive said wheel and with achannel, the upper end of which is in position to coincide with the saidpockets as the wheel revolves, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination with the frame of a planter, of a supplemental frame,a seedbox carried thereby, seed-distributing mechanism at each end ofsaid box, and plows carried by said box, eachplow on a bar adjustablevertically in said supplemental frame, substantially as set forth.

7. The combination with the main frame and driving-shaft, of theswinging seed-distributing frame, a rock-shaft, connections whereby toelevate the rear end of the seeddistributing frame, driving mechanismincluding a clutch device, and connections whereby the clutch device isshifted when the rock-shaft is operated to lift the seed-distributingframe, substantially as set forth.

8. The combination with the mainfiframe,

driving-shaft, swinging frame E, rock-shaft by the clutch devices areshifted as the rock- I 32 connected to the frame E, and means forrocking said shaft, of sprocket-Wheels loose upon the driving-shaft,sprocket-chains carried by said Wheels and extending to pinions on theframes E, clutch devices for connecting the sprocket Wheels to andreleasing them from the shaft, and connections Whereshaft is turned,substantially as set forth. IO In testimony whereof I afiiX my signaturein presence of two Witnesses.

FREDERICK TIEMANN. Witnesses:

CHESTER K. ALLEN, FRANK B. HARRIS.

